


Dog person

by EnlacingLines



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cats, Family Feels, Felix loves cats, First Dates, Fluff, M/M, Meet-Cute, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, glenn is alive - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-21
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:47:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22836526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EnlacingLines/pseuds/EnlacingLines
Summary: The painful truth hits Felix in the chest as he sits down for dinner that evening.He can never have a cat, despite how much he loves them, because Glenn is too allergicWhere Felix loves cats, but fakes being a dog person. That is, until someone works out his secret.Written for Felix's birthday week 2020 for prompts cats and modern AU
Relationships: Felix Hugo Fraldarius/Sylvain Jose Gautier
Comments: 26
Kudos: 308
Collections: Felix Birthday Week 2020





	Dog person

**Author's Note:**

> I just had to write something for Felix's birthday week, and of course, it ended up Sylvix. 
> 
> Thank you to the lovely Alys for betaing on short notice, you are wonderful. 
> 
> This is very fluffy, and I hope you enjoy!

They find it curled up behind a dumpster in the back of an alley near the park, shivering despite the spring air. Except they tell their father they found the kitten near the giant tree at the far end, seeing as Glenn has been told not go near that alley, and Felix is very happy to lie in the face of potentially no more park trips with his big brother. 

Felix has never seen an animal this small in real life. It’s ginger, but covered in grime making the stripes and white flecks a dull, almost grey tone. Felix holds out a hand and it backs away at first, but eventually when they make no move to force themselves into its space, it slowly, almost sadly, investigates. 

Glenn wraps it in his jacket, and Felix peeks over his arms as it shivers in the fabric, Glenn cradling it close and making cooing noises. Felix desperately wants to cuddle it too, but he’s afraid he’ll drop it, and Glenn is so focused on getting home he knows it’s not the time to ask. 

By the time they ring the doorbell, Glenn has started sneezing. So despite his valiant efforts in rescuing the tiny, shivering ball of fluff, he is repaid with a new found allergy. Their father calls the vet, but being a Sunday, it means he cannot come over until the morning. 

“We’ll keep the little one over night,” Rodrigue says, and Glenn answers with a tremendous sneeze, his eyes watering. 

“This is so unfair, I want to pet it,” he moans, but sneezes three times rapidly and is forced to leave the room. 

It’s that night at seven years old when Felix’s terrible fate is sealed. For as Glenn’s allergy worsens, Felix’s adoration of the kitten heightens. He is allowed to keep it in his room overnight, seeing as Glenn is feeling so miserable. He sets up a tiny bed with blankets and jackets, overseen by his father, and feeds it milk from a small saucer. 

“Be very gentle, Felix. It’s had a tough day,” Rodrigue encourages softly as Felix holds out a trembling small hand, and the kitten hides in the blanket, unsure even after all the care and warmth of the evening. 

But it doesn’t take long before it sniffs his fingers and slowly allows Felix to pet it, first just under the chin and then its cheeks and head, before it starts purring. Felix smiles up at his father, and Rodrigue sighs as he ruffles his youngest son’s hair, the sound heavy still in Felix’s memory, a cloud of the joy he recalls so intrinsically. 

Which makes sense, in hindsight. For the next day the kitten is gone, and the house cleaned from top to bottom so Glenn can finally breathe again. The painful truth hits Felix in the chest as he sits down for dinner that evening. 

He can never have a cat, despite how much he loves them, because Glenn is too allergic. 

Glenn isn’t exactly happy about this either, he also likes cats a lot; but not with the sheer force of his entire being that Felix seems to. As if sensing this, his father buys Felix a plush cat toy the exact colour of the kitten, and Felix cries as it’s handed over. Glenn hugs him and says sorry into his hair, as their father watches on with a worried expression, obviously thinking he’s made Felix cry when he’s doing something nice. 

“Hey, this is better than a real cat! You can hug it all night, it doesn’t need feeding and it doesn’t poop!” Glenn says, trying to make Felix smile. 

“Glenn, please don’t talk about poop,” Rodrigue answers and both boys giggle. 

Felix names the cat plush Flare, which is what he would have named the kitten, and sleeps with it every night. Glenn occasionally tries to steal it, but that usually ends in tears, shouting and one time Glenn bleeding where Felix had gotten a little overprotective. 

It all changes though on Glenn’s eleventh birthday, when he gets a puppy. 

The puppy is definitely cute, and Glenn adores it, naming him Gwain after the knight, which makes Felix love it a little more as seeing his brother so happy boosts his happiness a level. Their father loves dogs, so naturally it’s part of the family in less than an hour. 

It’s just...not quite what Felix wants. It’s loud and jumpy, scares him once in the night and destroys his drawings. He knows the puppy doesn’t mean it, and doesn’t degrade it for more than a few minutes, especially as it always leaves whatever it’s doing to sit next to Felix when he’s sad. 

But it’s also not Felix’s pet. It loves all of them equally and Glenn does try to share most of the time, but Felix knows he’ll never love him as much as Glenn does. He just isn’t a dog person, doesn’t feel that instant pull they do when faced with such an animal. 

Felix though, cannot be a cat person as he isn’t allowed a cat. So ends up, in a strange way, faking being a dog person. 

It’s probably due to him wanting to emulate Glenn in so many ways, and the fact that Glenn wants Felix to love the puppy too. So he joins in with dog walks, and play time, and as he gets older is allowed to walk the dog on his own when Glenn is busy studying for exams. People just assume he likes dogs, seeing as he’s always with one. 

Flare remains his only tell, and Felix is never going to show anyone his plush toy. 

Felix’s friends also love dogs. Ingrid has one of her own, while Dimitri isn’t allowed one, so begs Felix to be able to go on walks. Felix lets him hold on to Gwain sometimes, but he panics so often it’s much more of a hassle than anything. 

“Is Glenn taking him to uni?” Ingrid asks as they walk their dogs after school, Dimitri sulking a little as neither have let him hold a leash. 

“No, he’s not allowed. So I guess he’s mine,” Felix says, unsure how he feels about that. 

“That’s so cool, I want a dog,” Dimiri says, and Felix scoffs. 

_ I want a cat _ , he thinks, but doesn’t say as he watches Ingrid let loose her own hound and send it chasing after a stick. A cat wouldn’t dare chase after something you found on the ground. He quite likes that about them. 

It’s then a thought strikes. Perhaps when Glenn leaves this summer, he can have a cat. He waits for a moment to ask, when Glenn is out of the house, but his father frowns at him. 

“Felix, we already have a pet. We can’t have another,” he says, scratching Gwain as he does. 

Felix scowls. “I’ll look after the cat, you won’t even know it’s there. I promise,” he says, fiercely, all his determination suddenly toppling over, breaking into every word. 

“No, Felix, you’ll be looking after Gwain and your exams start next year. You won’t have time,” he says. 

Felix stamps his foot. “It’s Glenn’s dog, why do I have to look after it?” he says, voice rising. 

Rodrigue turns stern. “Do not take that tone with me, Felix. You cannot have another pet, and that is final,” he says. 

“But Glenn gets everything he wants because he’s your favourite. Whatever,” he yells, before stomping out of the room, completely ignoring his father’s shouts of him to return, running upstairs and slamming his door for good measure. 

He sits on his bed and holds his hands to his face, blinking rapidly. He is not going to cry over a non-existent cat. He won’t. He’s just… fed up with living in second place, but loves Glenn so much more than any other person. He doesn’t want him to move so far away, but equally wants every part of him gone so he can be Felix, rather than just Felix, Glenn’s little brother. 

He doesn’t talk to Rodrigue for two days, as of all three of them he is the most stubborn. It aggravates his father no end, which just makes him yearn to do it more, but Glenn drags him out to walk the dog one evening. 

“Is this what it’s going to be like when I’m not here? You can’t just ignore dad, Felix,” he says, and Felix kicks a stone. 

“It’s working great so far,” he says and Glenn groans. 

“You’re such a fucking pain, I’m gonna miss you. And worry about you so much. Dad’s literally tearing his hair out, I saw him tugging it before we left,” he says, and Felix laughs. 

“He doesn’t care, it’s fine,” he says, and Glenn stops him with a pull of his arm, frown on his face. 

“Of course he does. Dad loves you, idiot. He’s just actually a moron and doesn’t know how to handle anything. And you drive him nuts,” he says, elbowing Felix. 

“Says the one who threw up in his succulents last week,” Felix grumbles and Glenn laughs again, throwing his arm around Felix and strong-arming him in for a hug he only vaguely protests. 

He doesn’t protest at all when Glenn hugs him tightly goodbye the day he leaves for university. Glenn actually cries when he says goodbye to his dog, and Felix feels a pang of guilt for his past emotions. It grows when Gwain wanders into his room as he silently cries under the duvet, hating how empty the house feels without Glenn. It’s stupid to miss his brother so much when he’s almost sixteen, but he does. And Glenn’s dog lending its warmth helps somewhat. 

Gwain is also an escape, because living alone with his father is hard. They clash, in ways Felix both expected and didn’t, and he finds himself more frustrated and angry with everything and anything. He takes up running and brings the dog with him, Ingrid and Dimitri joining in all weathers, all of them seeming to need to just run until they can’t breathe as adolescence piles on top of them. 

Glenn returning home in his breaks helps the balance, but it’s immediately disrupted the second he’s gone, leaving Felix yearning for his own departure when he hits eighteen. Rodrigue insists in driving him and Dimitri, seeing as they are both going to the same place, while Ingrid gets the luxury of driving her own car. 

For some inexplicable reason, Rodrigue brings the dog, and Felix spends the whole ride sending videos to Glenn of their overfilled car with a huge dog in the front seat, ending with Glenn calling him and insisting on speaking to Gwain. 

His family is full of weirdos. 

But he does instantly become the most popular person in his dorm when he arrives with the dog, even if it’s just to unpack. Felix doesn’t particularly want this, but at least they can all skip the small talk and discuss dogs instead. 

He walks Gwain back to the car, where Rodrigue is waiting, vaguely dreading the goodbye, when someone walks into him. Felix stumbles, almost lets go of Gwain, who whines. 

“I am so sorry, I-oh hey, cute dog!” 

Felix adjusts himself and scowls down at the mop of bright red hair, which is all he can see of the person now kneeling on the floor and cuddling Gwain. Felix gives it a second, then clears his throat, causing the man to look up. 

Felix has to gulp for a second, for this person is quite frankly stunning. Even crouched over Felix can tell he’s tall, eyes bright and clearly delighted at his current circumstances. His smile verges on a smirk, alluring in the way it pulls up at the corners, and his hair falls across his eyes in what has to be purposeful manner. 

“Oh, sorry, I just love dogs. Are you new? I’m Sylvain, and you are just as cute as this guy,” he says with a wink, and immediately a piece of his charm dies. 

“I’m leaving,” Felix says, and tugs on the lead, his dog following at a reluctant pace, obviously quite happy at being given attention by this attractive, but obviously brazen, stranger. 

There’s a curse from behind and the sound of scrambling as Felix marches towards the parking lot, and yet he’s still a little surprised when the guy appears alongside him. His first assessment had been correct; he’s extremely tall, and Felix has to tilt his chin to glare. 

Sylvian though doesn’t seem put out. “You must be living around here, my dorm is over there. Seriously, if you ever need a hand with anything, let me know,” he says, pointing at the building opposite Felix’s. 

Sylvain’s expression looks slightly more sincere than when he first attempted to flirt with Felix, so he gives him a nod, then continues on his way. 

“See you around, cutie!” 

Felix turns to glare and Sylvain holds out his hands. “I was talking to the dog,” he says, winks again, and then turns on his way. 

Felix rolls his eyes, but puts it out of his mind, believing this will be his last interaction with Sylvain. This proves incorrect, for although he’s in his final year, he’s also on the rugby team with Dimitri and somehow, the two become friends. Which means Felix is subjected to the combination of two large idiots in his life. 

“Dimitri lost a tooth this afternoon. On another guy’s head!” Sylvain proclaims loudly as he sits down far too close to Felix in the cafe on campus.

Ingrid chokes on her latte. “A tooth?” 

Dimitri flushes and Felix glares at both of them. “That’s disgusting. Have you been to a dentist? What the fuck, go to a dentist,” Felix hisses as Dimitri shakes his head and seems to cower a little. 

“Aww, it’s stopped bleeding, we’ll go after we’ve eaten. It’s a molar, I’m sure it’s fine,” Sylvain says, and Felix just stares in pure horror. 

He can feel an entire tirade coming along when he sees a flicker of orange to his left. In his moment of hesitation, Ingrid has taken up the mantle, pretending she didn’t break her wrist and acted as normal for a whole week three years ago when she fell out of a tree while grounded to avoid trouble. 

In the corner of the cafe is a cat. Felix stares as it licks its paws nonchalantly, then curls up on a chair as if it’s the most normal thing in the world. 

“One of the cats got in.” 

Sylvain’s voice startles him, and he turns to see it’s just them at the table, Ingrid obviously having taken Dimitri away by force. Seeing he has his attention, Sylvain elaborates. 

“There’s quite a few round here, you must have seen them? A few of the places on campus don’t mind if cats get in. There’s one which hangs out in the lit section of the library who is super cute. I love cats,” Sylvain says almost wistfully. 

“I thought you loved dogs,” Felix replies, then blinks as Sylvain’s eyes widen. Thankfully though, for once Sylvain doesn’t comment. 

“I do, pretty much any adorable animal is amazing but… cats kinda have the edge. I like the regal vibe. And then they do something stupid and its… ” he cuts off, laughter disrupting the sentence. 

_ He has a nice laugh _ , Felix catches himself thinking, so immediately squashes the thought and looks away. Sylvain casts smiles for every pretty girl who passes, he shouldn’t get himself caught up in someone who will never look at him twice. 

“Flat white, right?” Sylvain says suddenly, standing. At Felix’s expression, he elaborates. 

“Your coffee? I don’t know when the others are coming back, but they’ve left their stuff. We should order if we’re staying,” he says. 

“I can get my own drink,” Felix protests, and Sylvain rolls his eyes. 

“Sure you can but I’m already standing, and if I go you can continue to look longingly at the cat you so obviously want to pet but won’t let yourself in public,” he says, and then leaves for the counter with a smirk. 

Felix has no choice but to grind his teeth in Sylvain’s direction. 

And look at the cat. But only for a minute or so. 

Sylvain is completely correct. The campus is full of cats which wander around with no care in the world. It’s absolute paradise in many ways, as Felix finds himself for the first time in his life with daily access to cats. His dorm has a tiny outside space where he drinks coffee in the mornings when he doesn’t have an early class, and more often than not he can attract one of them to spend the time with him if he’s got a little bit of leftover food. 

They are also far too distracting when he’s already drunk. Which is how he finds himself sitting on the ground at some time past 2 a.m. with a cat on his lap. The cat’s comfy, it’s purring, he’s happy and he can’t remember which one is his dorm so he’s going to just sit here until his brain works again. 

“Felix? You okay buddy?”

Felix looks up and there, of course, is Sylvain. The cat meows, and butts into his hand where he’s stopped petting it, so he continues on command. 

“I’m good, yeah Sylvain,” he says, going back to his cat cuddling. 

He is a little put out when Sylvain sits down next to him, and Felix glares. 

“Careful,” he hisses and Sylvain bites his lip, which he would like to be the one doing but-no, abort, no, cats are better than boys anyway. 

“Did… did you just say cats are better than boys?” Sylvain says. 

“They absolutely are. Cats are the best. Aren’t you?” he says, and the one in his lap purrs because it’s a very smart cat. 

“Sure, it’s a cute one. So, you been out tonight?” Sylvain says and Felix nods, still looking at the cat. 

“Wanna go back to your dorm?” 

“Nope,” Felix replies because it’s so much better here right now. Also, he still can’t remember where his dorm is. 

Sylvain laughs, which makes Felix smile and it really is a perfect end to the night, even if the world is just a little spinnier than he would like it to be. 

“Can I pet the cat, then?” Sylvain asks, shifting a little so his arm is leaning against Felix’s. 

He contemplates it for a second; the cat is clearly happy with attention, as who wouldn’t be with it’s ears being stroked, so perhaps if Sylvain is careful it would be a good idea. 

“Be mindful,” he says sternly, and Sylvain once again laughs, but as he’s now pressed against Felix, he can feel it rumble through him, all the way from his arm to his ears, the shape and sound of his mirth. 

Sylvain reaches out a hand and the cat immediately butts into it, and Felix grins. 

“Insatiable,” he says. 

“Me or the cat?” Sylvain replies, and Felix shifts a little so he’s leaning against Sylvain fully, enjoying the strange sensation of feeling his voice where their limbs are connected. 

“Both,” he says, and Sylvain jostles him slightly, so Felix turns to glare, afraid the cat will run off. 

But Sylvain is smiling down at him, hair longer than he remembers from the last time he saw him, which is impossible and strange. His fingers curl in the grass with their need to swipe it out of his eyes so Felix can see them clearly in the gloom. His smile is a little teasing and a little tired, which suddenly reminds Felix of precisely how many hours he’s been awake. There’s a sudden heaviness to his limbs, for although it’s early in the year and likely freezing, he’s numbed by alcohol and the presence of small things which bring him happiness in the middle of the night. 

Time shifts, and when he comes to he’s wrapped in warmth with no cat on his lap. He makes a dissatisfied huff. 

“Ah, awake now. Your furry friend left a few minutes ago. We should get you back to your room, come on,” Sylvain says, and Felix just nods, as with no cat there’s no sense in staying here, and his bed is calling. 

With the time lapse, he suddenly remembers exactly where his dorm is: almost right in front of him, so he stumbles there and unlocks his door on the third try. Sylvain is absolutely no help at all, except for the time he catches Felix as he trips up the stairs, but Felix is deleting that clumsiness from his brain. 

“Okay, let me get some water for you,” Sylvain says as Felix collapses face first onto his bed. 

Water sounds amazing, and instantly Felix realises just how disgusting his mouth feels, so drags himself up to clean his teeth. By the time he’s finished in the bathroom, Sylvain is back, glass of water in hand, and passes it to him. Felix drinks almost half of it before Sylvain takes it back and places it on his nightstand. 

“Can I get my coat back?” Sylvain says with a grin, and Felix then realises the reason he’s been so thoroughly warm in the past few minutes as the dark full length coat, the sleeves of which move down almost to his fingertips. 

He feels himself blush, struggles out of it and throws it at Sylvain, who yelps at his good aim. Felix ignores him and practically jumps into bed, burying himself in his pillow and clutching Flare to his chest. 

He hopes to hear the sound of the door closing so when it doesn’t, he cracks an eye open with effort. Sylvain is just sort of standing there, looking at him. When he catches Felix’s eye he starts. 

“I-I’ll see you later. Drink more water when you wake up, Felix. And no more nighttime cat cuddling adventures,” he scolds and Felix turns over. 

“Fuck you, I’ll cuddle cats whenever I want,” he says into the blanket, and Sylvain’s laughter is the last thing he hears before he succumbs to sleep. 

This is not an incident he lives down, but it’s thankfully not something Sylvain mentions to Ingrid or Dimitri, so the teasing is reserved for when they are alone. Which, for some reason, is increasingly often. They don’t have classes together but he still runs into Sylvain a surprising amount, especially at the library; they both have no classes on Wednesdays and an unspoken regime of meeting there at 10am. 

It’s on one of those trips that Sylvain introduces him to Tigger. Felix has no reason to go to the Lit section, so has never met the resident cat, but almost has to withhold a gasp when he sees him. He sits on one of the desks at the back of a reference section, in a perfect circle with his eyes closed, pleased as anything. 

He’s a huge ginger cat. Felix’s absolutely favourite. 

He accepts petting graciously, but eyes them carefully as they approach, seeming to say ‘if you dare try to move me, I will cut you,’ and Felix adores him. 

“I knew you’d like him, he reminds me of that toy you have,” Sylvain says and Felix freezes. He turns around slowly, Tigger making a upset burbling, so Sylvain jumps forward and takes over while Felix basks in his own humiliation. 

“Hey, I think it’s cute. You obviously love cats, I wish I still had a stuffed toy from when I was a kid,” he says, as if the most natural thing in the world for a man who will be nineteen in a week to still have a cuddly cat toy. 

But it is a genuine comment: he’s known Sylvain long enough to identify the moments when he’s teasing, covering or being himself. And right now, he honestly believes in his own words, which makes Felix want to give back for a reason he isn’t sure about, but doesn’t question. 

“My father gave it to me when we couldn’t keep a kitten we rescued. My brother is allergic. The toy looks exactly like that kitten,” he says, and Sylvain looks up, surprised. 

“And your dog?” he asks. 

“Gwain is Glenn’s. I like dogs, but…” he says, and to his shock, Sylvain finishes.

“They aren’t cats.” 

Felix nods, a halting motion, and then breaks away from Sylvain’s gaze, the vulnerability he feels at just revealing one inconsequential part of him hitting hard. He isn’t used to revelations, isn’t used to people wanting to know his inner workings. 

Sylvain doesn’t push for more or comment further. They stroke Tigger for a while longer, then study until lunchtime, when they are both in need of a break and food. 

“So, your birthday is next week,” Sylvain says as they walk to the cafe. 

“Hmm,” Felix says, surprised he remembered, as he doesn’t actually recall mentioning it. 

“What are you doing the Friday after?” he asks. 

Felix falters, just for a second, heart pounding. He doesn’t have classes on Fridays, which Sylvain knows, but this is unexpected. He swallows, and tries to play down the barrage of questions which invade his mind. 

“I don’t have plans,” he says, hoping his voice is as neutral as he wills it to be. 

“Great, well keep it that way. I have a surprise for you,” he says, and has the audacity to wink at Felix. 

“Who says I want your surprise,” Felix says, crossing his arms as they enter the cafe; Sylvain holding the door open over his head. Stupid tall people. 

“Oh believe me Felix, you want this. Trust me, okay?” he says. 

And Felix is weak to the excitement on Sylvain’s face, so sighs heavily and agrees in a put-upon way, when in actuality the excitement he sees is contagious. He doesn’t know if he’s hoping for too much though; that this is just a friendly outing when Felix hopes at the back of his mind for it to be something more. But he gets through the week, deals with the call from his father and the millions of embarrassing voice messages of Glenn singing, until Friday afternoon. 

Sylvain picks him up in his car, unexpected and causing him to raise an eyebrow, but Sylvain shakes his head with a grin. 

“You get no hints, Felix. Come on, let’s not be late,” he says, patting the seat next to him. 

It’s not a long drive, just to the other side of town, which is strangely laid-out so public transport is a nightmare. But the 20 minutes or so he spends in an enclosed space with Sylvain is a new and intense type of torture. Felix doesn’t know why a car trip of all things is what triggers his realization of how much he both longs for and is scared of being close to Sylvain. He has bizarre cravings; to touch his hair, cover his hand on the gear stick with his own, to lean in and rest against his shoulder like that drunken night outside his dorm. 

Thankfully Sylvain doesn’t mind the quiet on the drive as Felix struggles to control his urges, and worries if he opens his mouth something ridiculous will come out. They park in a lot near a street Felix hasn’t seen before, and Sylvain guides them out, the distance between them small, a shade off touching. 

“Are you ever going to explain or are we just walking through random streets?” Felix says, with no true bite as it’s more to fill the echoes of their footsteps than anything else. 

“Aww, don’t you trust me? Almost there,” Sylvain says, sliding an arm over his shoulders to grip him to his side. Felix wriggles out of the hold quickly, and Sylvain lets him go with a laugh, but it seems to Felix’s ridiculous mind that they are somehow managing to walk closer after, if that is even possible. 

“And here we go! Happy birthday, Felix,” Sylvain says, stopping abruptly at a nondescript shop, no different than the others, large glass windows displaying what at first Felix thinks is furniture. 

That is until he sees the large tortoiseshell cat curled up in the window. 

Felix blinks for a second, then realises on a ledge above is a white cat with wide blue eyes staring down at him. And as his brain catches up, he sees a girl inside the shop holding a brightly coloured string above a small black and white cat who jumps ever higher to catch it. 

He turns around to look at Sylvain, who has his hands behind his head, grinning widely. 

“Take it you’ve never been to a cat cafe? Ingrid said you hadn’t, and this place is meant to be one of the best, right in town. It’s like it was meant to be.” 

Felix doesn’t know what to do with the words ‘meant to be’ directed at him from Sylvain, but thankfully he doesn’t have to work it out as Sylvain quickly ushers them inside for their booking. 

He reads the rules while waiting, Sylvain sending him an excited smile as they do, and Felix is almost wondering if he’s planned this for himself as well. But he finds he doesn’t care; he’d rather do this with someone who is excited about it than one who is dragged there by obligation. 

There’s a small child gate type thing as they enter, and standing stubbornly by it is an extremely fluffy black cat, who looks up at Felix with emploring yellow eyes. He instantly wants to let it out, but knows he can’t. 

“Softie, I saw that,” Sylvain whispers in his ear as one on the staff picks up the cat so they can enter. Felix is instantly jealous that they are allowed to pick up the cats, but Sylvain grabs him by the hand and leads him into the cafe before he can think about it any further. 

He’s entirely distracted by Sylvain holding his hand. 

He can feel himself go red when they are taken to their table, then balks a little at the balloon, card and confetti at the table. Sylvain squeezes his hand. 

“I had to!” Sylvain says and Felix rolls his eyes but can’t deny the smile. 

He’s hasn’t had a fuss over his birthday in the last few years, especially with how strained it is at home with just his father. So this is...sweet. And also possibly revealing that this is more than just a friendly outing. 

He opens the card, and sees it’s from all the cats at the cafe. He may enjoy that far too much. 

He places it down on the table, and then looks over at Sylvain, who is watching him as if for approval. Felix steels himself, knows he can’t keep wondering for the whole time they’re here. 

“Thank you. You didn’t have to do...so much,” he says slowly, unsure how to have this type of conversation. He’s never actually been on a date, so has no idea how to ask someone if what they are doing actually is one. 

Sylvain grins from across the table, leaning forward. 

“No problem. Can’t have my favourite cat person have a birthday without cats,” he says, without a single break in his voice or posture, which Felix envies as the word ‘favourite’ cycles around his mind and incites a blush. 

He clears his throat. “I’m sure you know a lot of cat people,” he says, determined to keep eye contact, even if his whole being is screaming to look away. 

Sylvain’s look seems to soften, his smile curling upwards and his eyes seeming to flicker into a thousand different shades, as if thoughts really can translate into physicality, like every romance novel Ingrid read to him. 

“True. But that doesn’t stop you being my favourite,” he says, and Felix has to look away at that. 

He clears his throat and pulls a menu towards him, staring at the drinks and trying to get his mind in working order. 

“Get what you like, it’s all on me. Birthday treat and…” 

When he doesn’t continue, Felix peers over the top of his menu, a little surprised as Sylvain clearly fumbles with his words, one hand at the back of his head, mussing through his hair while he thinks. He exhales once, then looks back at Felix. 

“Well, if you don’t want much to eat now, we can always go for dinner as a… as a date. If you like,” Sylvain says, and Felix lets him squirm for just a second before putting the menu down. 

“I don’t like sweet things, and they mostly serve cakes here. So dinner would be good,” he says, and sees Sylvain visibly relax. 

Which is sweet in itself, seeing his compuse break just a small amount, but Felix is glad they are on the same page. He cannot help but tease a little though. 

“Presumptuous to think I’d say yes, though,” he says, and although he is expecting a little more of the unsure Sylvain, what he gets is a wide grin. 

“Well, seeing as you like cats better than boys, I thought I’d try with the cats and see if the boy had a chance,” he says, and Felix’s mouth falls open. 

Sylvain laughs, but then leans forwards, lacing their hands together once more, and Felix’s face definitely turns crimson. 

“You have a very, small chance. That’s all,” he says, and Sylvain nods seriously. 

And so Felix gets to spend his birthday being a cat person to the fullest, Sylvain taking hundreds of pictures of him with every cat, as Felix makes it his mission to try and talk to every single one at the cafe. The highlight is when Midnight, the notoriously picky black cat, sits on his lap for fifteen minutes, and Sylvain declares he’s setting the photos he takes as his phone lock-screen. 

“So, have fun?” Sylvain asks, as they leave hand in hand, Felix dragging the balloon after him. 

“Yes. Thank you again,” he says. 

Sylvain grins, and tugs on his hand. 

“Night’s not over yet,” he replies, and although Felix knows that’s true, it’s honestly pretty perfect as birthdays and dates go.

It would only be better if he could take a cat home with him. But for now, a trip to a cat cafe with Sylvain will more than do.   
  


**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! 
> 
> Come find me on [Twitter](http://www.twitter.com/EnlacingL/)


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